Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Freakstar]

[Tjames426]

I studied German from 1977 to 1980. So that is 28 years ago.

While I was in Graduate School [1986 - 1988], I had first generation German classmates that I freely spoke German with at the time.

Later, I began to learn Chinese full time. Thus, I began to have what is typically called "cognitive language interference?". When I wanted to use German, Chinese vocabulary would automatically impedes with my German grammar and vocabulary process.

Despite the oral problems of interference, my listening skills are still very sharp. I can still follow the German conversations in "The Longest Day", "The Boot", and recently in the international award winning German Film, "DownFall". In fact, I recently purchased a non English subtitled version of Downfall. I will be viewing it in the near future. I believe for most of us, the issue is not forgetting or losing our second language. But rather, we have no outlet to use it effectively.

Most of us who took three years of High School French or Spanish could quickly revive our lessons and vocabulary if put into the right environment.

***
As others have already mentioned, the issues I brought up earlier are definitely a product of forced English across the board, both the Schools and Academies.

My High School experience, and possibly even yours, was that Foreign Language is an elective. I chose to study German, because I wanted to learn it. My Great Grandparents came from Germany. Others wanted to study Spanish or French for their own reasons.

Imagine how many of our problems and frustrations in the Korean educational system would disappear if our English classes were only filled with Korean youngsters who actually "chose" and "desired" to learn English?

[kimchipig]

I will wade into this mess. Anybody who stays in Korea for any length of time soon realises that what they are doing is a complete waste of time. Even if you have a PhD from Harvard, a Korean will never consider a waygook to be a teacher. They won't learn anything from you.

Long timers learn this in about year three, or I did anyway. That is how long it took me to reach the pinnacle of ESL land in Korea, a national university with all the nice perks. Now, where else in the world could one land such a good job in such a short time? And why? Well, because what a big nose does in Korea is a complete waste of time. You are just spinning your wheels.

I was born at about the worst time imaginable, in the last year of the baby boom. When I landed on the job market in Canada, we had double digit unemployment, the dollar was worth shite and nothing was happening. That was a good reason to go to Korea and learn a job that would have later benefits. But now? WTF for? Anybody can get a good career after university if they have half a gram of gumption and you do not have to leave Down Home and go to Korea, you can go to Calgary or Vancouver.

As long as you show up and nobody complains about you, the world is your oyster. The less you do, the better. Homework? Why bother! They won't do it anyway and they will like you better if you don't give any.

But what does Korean ESL experience mean on your resume in the real world? Sweet Fanny Adams. So go to Korea, party it up, meet hot chicks, be a star but be smart and don't think it is a career. It isn't.

[VanIslander]

[Cheonmunka]

[xingyiman]

[tomato]

[psychohel]

Three quick points - generally speaking!

1) Qualifications don't make a good teachers, BUT a good course will give you the opportunity to improve (bad to not so bad, good to great...) in ways you might not have thought up by yourself. My CELTA course was great, taught me loads of stuff I hadn't picked up in 5 years teaching in the UK.

2) The huge span of abilities in my public school elementary classes makes me want to pull my hair out. I guess I fall into the 'dedicated but not great' teacher camp and there's not many lessons where I don't have bored and or clueless students at either end of the spectrum.

3) They CAN do immersion English. I haven't had a co-teacher for the majority of this (calendar) year. Because they haven't had the fall back of a Korean translation, the kids have learnt to really listen to English. When I'm explaining activities it's not the low ability students who don't understand it's the ones who think they know it all and don't bother listening (but I suppose that's nothing to do with ESL!). I actually think the kids learn more when my co-teacher is there to add a BIT of Korean, but he's pretty good; he can speak decent English and gets the better kids to give explanations of grammar points in Korean rather than lecturing them himself.

Sorry, not as quick as I meant to be!

[jkelly80]

It's hard to learn how to play tennis if you don't know the rules for the first two months.

In the same fashion, immersion can be disastrous if the kid doesn't know what's going on. In a class of 35 this is rather likely with a few students.

[Newbie]